American Rift and Quartered White Oak

American White Oak Quercus Spp – May reach 100′ in height and have a trunk of 36” in diameter, the predominant harvesting method is single-tree selection – not clear-cutting. Foresters choose individual trees for harvest based on a complex array of considerations. In quartersawn lumber there are limitations to the width of the boards that you can specify. Because the log is quartered before boards are cut from it, quartered boards are narrower, given the same size tree. Lengths are typically between 4′ and 12′, and widths are between 4” and 8” on average.

Distribution: Eastern; USA, Appalachian and Southeastern Canada

General Characteristics Rift and Quartersawn: Color is the same as plain sawn. Quartersawn White Oak is separated by visual characteristics into either “quartered” which exhibits medullary ray or ray fleck in roughly 80% of the board, which becomes even more pronounced when the wood is finished. And “rift,” which are the boards that show less than 80% flake. is simply less figured “quartered,” while maintaining the same straight grain appearance as quartered. In rift, the growth rings appear as parallel lines running along the length of the board.

Hardness/Janka: Janka: 1210 (6% softer than Northern Red Oak)

Grain: The advantage of its straight grain will restrict its shrinkage to the width and the length of the plank as opposed to thickness. Another advantage is that warping and cupping is minimized, making it an ideal hardwood flooring product. The grain pattern in White Oak is somewhat more muted than in Red Oak due to a typically slower growth rate along with the White Oak’s pores are filled with tyloses.

Variations Within Species & Grades: Regardless of the degree of figure, whether highly pronounced or microscopically fine, the quartered medullary ray literally jumps off the face of the plank when stained and finished. It is this sparkle that makes quartersawn lumber the preferred choice for architectural and design projects of distinction. For the rift planks, however there are fewer than 50% of the cuttings that will manifest the rift attribute and they will be the narrowest in the yield.

Customized Species & Grades: Infinite possibilities available to achieve a look as unique as you. White Oak is truly the all American wood. Dense, strong, durable, and from a long-lived tree, it welcomed the settlers to the East Coast. It was used for durable bottom logs in cabins, ships, and most importantly for wagons. As a major component of wagon wheels and other high strength parts, it carried the settlers even further west and supplied both the North and South with the means to transport artillery and other heavy items used in the Civil War.

Quercus Spp – Alba: Stains and polishes to a good finish, however, during the finishing process, tannin’s at the surface can react with some liquids to turn the wood green or brown. European techniques and oils can blur the differentiation between centuries old chateau planks to your newly minted North American oak floor. Available in solid or engineered planks.

Distinctions: Hand scraped/distressed, wire brushed, fuming/scorching, patterns, pegging, smooth sawn, bleaching and French bleeding of your custom wide plank hardwood floor is especially lovely and unique and shows off the medullary rays in the quartered wide planks. Stains and polishes to a good finish. The machined edges, whether with 2 or 4 can be bevel, radius or square edge and further distinguished by hand sculpting; pillowed or with Cajun corners. Customized wear patterns are achieved by first assembling the floor off site and then a team of craftsman crawl over the floor planks hand hewing a million little wear patterns, each depth, width, and length is random and individualized, as would an antique foot worn floor.